DO I NEED UNINSURED MOTORIST COVERAGE IN PENSACOLA

Accidents can happen to any of us at any moment and can leave
you with thousands of dollars in hospital expenses as well as lost wages and
lower quality of life. While the accident may have been unavoidable, you can minimize
the hardships by having uninsured motorist coverage.

In Florida, drivers are only required to carry a small amount
of Bodily Injury Liability (BIL) insurance. This coverage, which can be as
little as $10,000.00, is meant to cover injuries to other people- not you!
Therefore, if you are hit by a Florida driver and you learn they were covered
by insurance, it may still only be that little amount of BIL. In other words,
even if you win your personal injury lawsuit against the negligent driver, the
amount may be too little to cover your medical expenses not to mention other
damages.

To make matters worse, many Florida drivers do not comply
with the minimum amount of BIL. There are numerous uninsured drivers driving
the Florida roads. If you get hit by any of these drivers, you are left to bear
most of the burden of the accident.

Why you
need uninsured motorist coverage

As a Florida driver, you can accept or decline uninsured
motorist (UM) coverage; however, your auto insurance company is under
obligation to offer you the UM coverage. Therefore, when you are hit by an
uninsured driver or a driver with insufficient insurance coverage, your
insurance company can step in if you are covered by UM insurance.

In the event of an accident, your insurance carrier can take
charge of your expenses when the negligent driver is unable to take care of
your losses and bills. Even when the driver is unknown, as in the cases of hit
and run, the UM coverage will come into play.

UM coverage can also be your salvation in Florida when the no-fault coverage is insufficient in covering
your accident expenses and damages.
Florida is a no-fault state,
thus the normal insurance coverage is supposed to cover the victim’s medical
expenses and other losses in minor accidents. However, in major accidents with
serious injuries, the no-fault coverage
may not be enough to cover all expenses, so UM coverage can come to your
rescue.

How much
UM coverage do you need?

There are various policies available to drivers, like stacked
coverage, which allows the insurer to combine coverage limits using a single
policy for various vehicles. Note that you must buy BIL before you can buy the
UM coverage. Your BIL affects the amount of UM you can purchase. For example,
if you buy BIL coverage of $10,000.00, you may only be able to purchase UM
coverage of $10,000.00. So we recommend that you purchase a higher amount of BIL
so you can have access to a higher amount of UM coverage.

You should note that UM coverage will not cover damage to
your vehicles. In some cases, your insurance company may get tricky about paying
up. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you work it out with them.

Carrie Cromey has practiced law for nearly 15 years and is highly skilled in all matters pertaining to bankruptcy and debt resolution. Jason is a veteran criminal defense attorney and also has extensive experience with personal injury cases.

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The firm is located in the seat of Escambia County in beautiful Pensacola, Florida. We handle cases throughout the Pensacola metro area including Pensacola, Cantonment, Navarre, Pace, Gonzalez, Ensley, Brent, Myrtle Grove, Milton, Ferry Pass, Gulf Breeze and surrounding areas.